Parasitic helminths polarize immune response of their vertebrate hosts towards anti-inflammatory Th2 type and therefore it is hypothesized that they may suppress the inflammatory conditions in autoimmune disorders. The present study was undertaken to investigate in vivo immunomodulatory and therapeutic potential of somatic antigens (Ag) of liver infecting digenetic trematodes [Fasciola gigantic...

Cholangiocarcinoma is a common hepatobiliary carcinoma in Thailand. It is believed that both chronic exposure to liver fluke infestation and nitrosamine exposure are the two main underlying factors leading to the carcinogenesis. Here, the author further extrapolates and proposes a new hypothesis based on the environmental ecological data that the stimulation of fresh water fish by contaminated ...

background: parasitological investigations on paramphistomosis were carried out over a 12-month period in the southeast of iran to determine the prevalence and intensity of this disease. methods: a total of 1000 cattle, sistani breed (n= 450) and brahman breed (n= 550) of all sex and age groups were inspected at random for the presence of paramphistomidae flukes in zabol slaughterhouse from dec...

Clonorchis sinensis is one of the most common causes of trematodiasis that is caused by the ingestion of raw fish contaminated with infective cysts. The adult flukes are predominantly present in the intrahepatic bile ducts, but occasionally they may be found in the pancreatic duct and extrahepatic bile ducts. The clinical manifestations depend on the number of flukes, the period of infestation,...

Our knowledge of the cellular changes that lead to liver cell carcinoma in humans is limited by proper and necessary ethical restriction on clinical research. We know rather more about risk factors, the most important of which is cirrhosis, it seems that both the causative agent and the time of duration of the cirrhotic process are relevent to the magnitude of this risk. According to present kn...

The liver is an important site for primary and secondary tumours. in western countries, the commonest malignant neoplasm of the liver is metastatic carcinoma, but hepatocellular carcinoma is a common and important cause of death elsewhere. There is a strong association with infection by hepatitis-B and -c; the latter explains the growing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in western countrie...

BACKGROUND Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is the second most common primary liver cancer, being characterized by its late diagnosis and fatal outcome. Recent epidemiological reports indicate an increasing worldwide incidence of intrahepatic CCA but a decreasing incidence of extrahepatic CCA. METHODS In this review, we present an overview of the incidence and epidemiology of CCA and possible strateg...

Two cathepsin L proteinases, cathepsin L1 and cathepsin L2, secreted by liver flukes may be involved in tissue penetration, nutrition, and protection from immune attack. To ascertain the immunoprophylactic potential of these proteinases, and of another molecule, liver fluke hemoglobin (Hb), we performed vaccine trials in cattle. In the first vaccine trial various doses of cathepsin L1 were test...

Water fungi and fungus-like organisms as a biological factor of ecological water systems have significant influence on the environment and its modification. They decompose necrosis substrates found in water bodies. Fungi also can act as facultative parasites and then frequently occur on their hosts. The main aim of the present study is to investigate which of the fungi and straminipiles can gro...

The stimulatory effect of serotonin on glucose uptake and lactic acid production in the parasitic trematode, the liver fluke, Fusciola hepatica, was reported previously (1). Subsequently, it was found that incubation of the intact liver fluke with serotonin results in an increase of glycolysis in cell:free homogenates (2). Evidence was presented indicating that this effect was partly due to an ...